Circling the Wagons by Callisto (gen) 123K, PG-13

I should come clean here and confess Sheila is a dear friend and we beta each other's work.  That said, I'm pretty sure there are damned few who would argue with me about her skill as a writer.  We share three fandoms we enjoy—S&H, Pros, and The Sentinel.  Starsky & Hutch's was the first one she chose to write in.  Lucky fandom.

Sheila writes both gen and slash in S&H.  This story is gen all the way, and one of the longest pieces she has written in any fandom.  In it, Nicky is in town to visit his big brother.  And you know that's a recipe for trouble.  The younger Starsky isn't in town one night before his big brother gets pulled into a bar fight, defending Nicky from a couple of thugs.  It turns out the thugs didn't just randomly pick Nicky from out of the crowd.  They know him from New York, and are after him to settle a debt.  It's up to Starsky and Hutch to protect Nicky from the situation he has got himself into.  This is taut and exciting, and its centerpiece is a wonderfully protective Hutch, determined to save his partner from Nicky and from himself. 

The thin ice Hutch had let Nicky skate on broke then and there. Hutch also stood. Mindful of keeping his voice lowered so as not to reach the bedroom, he grabbed a handful of shirt and pulled the wearer towards him.

"Now you listen, and listen good, because I am only going through this once." His eyes flinted. "The only currency you got with me," he jerked a thumb towards the bedroom, "is him."

Blood Test by Minnie K. (gen) 206K, R

It probably looks like I'm picking on Nicky here.  I don't mean to—though I'll admit I have no fondness for the character.  There just happen to be some excellent stories out there about how a jealous Nicky reacts to his brother's feelings for Hutch.

In this particular fic, Nicky doesn't take it well at all.  He comes to Bay City for a surprise visit.  Almost immediately things begin to go horribly wrong for Hutch.  It looks like someone is out to get the tall blond.  Starsky is frantic with worry.  The last person he suspects is his baby brother.  That's a mistake.  Nicky is up to his eyeballs in the situation, as is another canon guest star who pops up unannounced.  This features a twisty-turny plot, chock full of surprises, wonderful angst, hurt/comfort, and bonding on the part of the boys. 

Blood Test has a slash sequel that is worth reading as well, although I prefer the original a bit more (mostly because of Nick's secret duplicity).  It's Blood Ties by Sarah Problem.

"I don't know you well enough to be friends, Nick," he admitted. "You're his brother. I know how much family means to him, so you started out with a lot going for you even before I met you. But you're dangerous."

"To him? You gotta know I'd never do anything to hurt Dave." Nick leaned forward, eyes growing hard. "Or do you mean dangerous to you?"

Before he had time to even think about the question, Starsky came out of the bathroom.

"Your turn, brother-of-mine," Starsky yelled. "If you're lucky, there might even be some hot water left."

"Boy, do you spoil me or what?" Nick laughed, his features jovial as he stood up from the table, but Hutch could still feel the dark surface under the man's facade.

Red Rose Ranch by Paula Wilshe & Keri T. (gen) 87K, PG

Post SR, Starsky and Hutch work undercover at a northern California cattle ranch to discover who is threatening its owner and his young daughter.  The guys learn how to saddle and ride a horse, how to throw a lariat, and Starsky tries his hand at barrel racing.  All these skills come in handy when the villain of the piece tries to take the guys out of the picture.  With Hutch seriously injured, it's up to Starsky to save his partner and get them both back to civilization.  I couldn't decide at first whether to put this in Hurt/Comfort or here, but seeing as there is an actual case the guys are trying to solve, it seemed like this was the appropriate category.  This is a lot of fun, with snappy lines, a fraught rescue sequence, and wonderful interaction between the guys.

"Gee, Dave, I'd say we're off to a rip roaring start." Hutch offered disgustedly.

"Ah, Ken, you always look at the bad side first," Starsky teased, enjoying the look of annoyance on Hutch's face. "Of course I'm disappointed that we can't be Joe and Adam."

"You just wanted to play Bonanza, that's why you picked those names."

"We are working on a ranch now, Hutch, those names would have been perfect."

"We'll save them for the next time we're undercover as ranch hands, okay?"

Dumping Delores by Libra Three (slash) 170K, NC-17

I looked at this Case Stories list, saw nothing but gen stories, and thought to myself, 'Surely, there's one slash story you enjoy where they aren't simply boffing each other's brains out.'  Thankfully, there is.  I love this story!  It's got all the things in it I adore—first time between the guys, Hutch h/c, hyper-protective Starsky, unrequited love (at least at first), a bit of macho posturing and misunderstanding, clever dialogue.  I think I've read this story six or eight times since I first found it.

Set post SR, the boys are sent undercover as guests to a mountain resort owned by a friend of Captain Dobey's.  Two men have been murdered, their bodies dumped in the woods around the resort.  The friend is a former cop himself, and wants this mystery solved pronto.  So off the boys go on vacation.  Since Gunther, Hutch's feelings towards his partner have changed, though he hasn't acted on them.  Starsky might be going through a similar sea change, though he isn't talking about the way he feels either.  Misunderstandings, jealousy and angst all follow.  But the writer's touch is so light and sure, that the situation never bogs down or becomes melodramatic.  This is a wonderful romance/mystery.  I wish Libra Three would write more!

Remember Lonnie Craig?" He didn't wait for a response because he knew perfectly well that Starsky remembered. "Remember the day of the funeral, when you went to his mother's and talked to his family?"

Hutch paused and Starsky obligingly prompted him.

"Yeah?"

Hutch looked down at his hands, flexing nervously on the steering wheel. "I watched the whole time."

"I know. I could feel your eyes on me."

"And when they all gathered around you ..." Hutch's throat closed; he could still see it, still feel the painful swell of pride in his chest. He swallowed. "When you came back, I tried as hard as I could, but ..." He smiled, glancing at his partner. "I just couldn't for the life of me figure out how to tell you that you're the bravest and the best human being I've ever known."

 

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